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March 28, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


Trenton Devils (26-34-7) at Reading Royals (37-24-6) 7:05 p.m. ET
- Reading is 6-3-2, including 3-0-2 at home, this season against Trenton and is 34-32-8 all-time against the Devils.
- Trenton is 5-2-0 in their last seven games.
- Dany Roussin leads the Royals against Trenton with six goals, eight assists and 14 points.
- Devils rookie Tony Zancanaro has two game-winning goals and nine points (5g-4a) in his last seven games.



Mississippi Sea Wolves (26-38-3) at South Carolina Stingrays (42-22-3) 7:05 p.m. ET
- South Carolina won 6-2 on Feb. 16 and is 3-1-0 in the season series and 10-5-4 all-time against Mississippi.
- Mississippi is 25.8 percent (8-for-31) on the power play in their last five games.
- Todd Griffith has seven points (4g-3a) in seven games for the Stingrays.
- Mark Hurtubise (2g-3a) and Travis Lisabeth (2g-3a) lead the Sea Wolves against South Carolina with five points.



Gwinnett Gladiators (42-20-5) at Florida Everblades (35-24-8) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Gwinnett won 5-4 at Florida on Wednesday and is 4-0-0 this season and 24-9-4 all-time against the Everblades.
- Florida leads the ECHL on the penalty kill at home with 89.2 percent (165-for-185).
- Tomas Pospisil scored a goal and had two assists for the Gladiators on Wednesday against Florida.
- Everblades' Preston Callander (1g-2a) and Derek Damon (1g-2a) each had three points on Wednesday.



Elmira Jackals (38-21-7) at Cincinnati Cyclones (51-10-5) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Cincinnati has won the last two meetings and is 3-0-1 at home and 6-2-1 overall against Elmira.
- Elmira is tied for sixth in the ECHL with 41 points (18-9-5) on the road.
- Thomas Beauregard leads the Cyclones against Elmira with 10 points (4g-6a).
- Benoit Doucet leads the Jackals against Cincinnati with seven assists and 10 points.



Columbia Inferno (31-27-10) at Augusta Lynx (31-33-4) 7:35 p.m. ET
- Columbia won 3-1 on Jan. 5 and is 5-2-2 in the season series and 29-19-9 all-time against Augusta.
- Augusta is 24-15-3 when out shooting their opponents.
- Brad Ralph leads the Inferno against Augusta with seven goals and 12 points.
- Matt Auffrey leads the Lynx against Columbia with seven points (2g-5a).



Johnstown Chiefs (31-30-5) at Wheeling Nailers (20-40-7) 7:35 p.m. ET
- Wheeling won 6-5 at Johnstown on Mar. 23 and is 4-5-2 this season and 79-53-17 all-time against the Chiefs.
- Johnstown is 13-6-5 in one-goal games including 5-2 in overtime and 4-3 in the shootout.
- Sean Collins leads the Nailers against Johnstown with seven assists and 11 points, including one game-winning goal.
- Chiefs' Randy Rowe has two game-winning goals and 14 points (4g-10a) in 11 games against Wheeling.



Charlotte Checkers (33-27-6) at Texas Wildcatters (50-7-11) 7:30 p.m. CT
- Texas is 5-0-0 this season against Charlotte and is 9-3-3 all-time against the Checkers.
- Charlotte is 28-2-2 when leading after the second period.
- John McNabb leads the Wildcatters against Charlotte with nine points (3g-6a).
- Checkers' Bruce Graham has two goals in his last four games and both have been game winners.



Victoria Salmon Kings (40-21-5) at Bakersfield Condors (22-36-9) 7 p.m. PT
- Bakersfield won 7-5 on Feb. 8 and is 2-3-3 in the season series and 16-8-5 all-time against Victoria.
- Victoria is on a four-game winning streak.
- Condor rookie Chris Di Ubaldo has two game-winning goals and four points (3g-1a) in his last two games.
- Ash Goldie leads the Salmon Kings against Bakersfield with seven goals and 16 points.



Las Vegas Wranglers (44-12-12) at Fresno Falcons (39-19-8) 7:30 p.m. PT
- Fresno won 6-2 on Feb. 2 and is 4-0-2 this season against Las Vegas and 18-17-5 all-time against the Wranglers.
- Las Vegas is tied for second in the ECHL with 48 points (21-7-6) on the road.
- Falcons' Kenny Bernard has 11 points (6g-5a) in his last 10 games.
- Wrangler defenseman Aaron Power has four assists in his last two games.



Idaho Steelheads (37-22-9) at Stockton Thunder (25-38-3) 7:30 p.m. PT
- Idaho has won the last three meetings and is 5-3-0 in the season series and 13-8-2 all-time against Stockton.
- Stockton is 22-12-1 when scoring first.
- Marty Flichel leads the Steelheads against Stockton with eight points (3g-5a).
- Brandon Schwartz leads the Thunder in March with seven assists and eight points in 10 games.



Phoenix RoadRunners (22-36-9) at Alaska Aces (39-23-5) 7:15 p.m. AT
- Alaska won 2-1 at home on Wednesday and is 4-2-0 this season and 15-3-1 all-time against Phoenix.
- Phoenix is 16-1-4 when leading after the second period.
- Aces' Josh Soares scored a goal Wednesday against Phoenix to extend his point streak to 12 games (9g-10a).
- Sean O'Connor scored a goal for the RoadRunners on Wednesday against Alaska.



Kelly Cup Playoffs Update



Johnstown can clinch a berth in the Kelly Cup Playoffs on Friday if:

Johnstown wins

OR

Reading wins in regulation

OR

Johnstown losses in overtime/shootout AND Reading wins

Watch Games Live on B2 Networks, the "Official Broadband Broadcast Provider" of the ECHL


Premier 'AA' Hockey League Fast Facts

- Celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2007-08, the ECHL is the third-longest tenured professional hockey league behind only the National Hockey League and the American Hockey League.

- ECHL began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states and has grown to be a coast-to-coast league with 25 teams playing 900 games in 17 states and British Columbia in 2007-08.

- The league officially changed its name to ECHL on May 19, 2003.

- Affiliations with 26 of the 30 teams in the National Hockey League, marking the 11th consecutive season that the league has had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL.

- 352 former ECHL players have played in NHL.

- 23 former ECHL players have made their NHL debut this season: former Peoria Rivermen and Alaska Aces goaltender Chris Beckford-Tseu (St. Louis on Feb. 21), former Florida Everblades center David Brine (Florida on Feb. 2), former Idaho Steelheads right wing B.J. Crombeen (Dallas on Jan. 19), former Gwinnett Gladiators left wing Kevin Doell (Atlanta on Jan. 4), former Alaska defenseman Zack FitzGerald (Vancouver on Feb. 5), former Columbia left wing Alex Foster (Toronto on Mar. 18), former Fresno goaltender Thomas Greiss (San Jose on Jan. 14), former Roanoke Express and Wheeling Nailers left wing Jason Jaffray (Vancouver on Dec. 12), former Wheeling Nailers left wing Joe Jensen (Carolina on Feb. 18), former Dayton and Elmira goaltender Dan LaCosta (Columbus on Mar. 25), former Toledo Storm goaltender Drew MacIntyre (Vancouver on Dec. 13), former San Diego Gulls left wing Cody McLeod (Colorado on Dec. 19), former Alaska Aces and Pensacola Ice Pilots center Chris Minard (Pittsburgh on Jan. 21), former Columbia Inferno center Brandon Nolan (Carolina on Dec. 22), former Johnstown Chiefs and Fresno Falcons goaltender Dmitri Patzold (San Jose on Oct. 7), former Gwinnett Gladiators and Louisiana IceGators left wing Pascal Pelletier (Boston on Jan. 17), former Reading Royals goaltender Jonathan Quick (Los Angeles on Dec. 6), former Stockton Thunder left wing Liam Reddox (Edmonton on Dec. 7), former Gwinnett Gladiators left wing Colin Stuart (Atlanta on Dec. 29), former Columbus Chill, Richmond Renegades and Trenton Titans left wing Pete Vandermeer (Phoenix on Feb. 10), former San Diego goaltender Tyler Weiman (Colorado on Oct. 4), former Charlotte Checkers right wing Craig Weller (Phoenix on Oct. 4) and former Phoenix RoadRunners center Daniel Winnik (Phoenix Coyotes on Oct. 4).

- 207 former ECHL players have played their first game in the NHL in the past seven seasons, including 94 since 2005-06.

- Twenty-six former ECHL players made their NHL debut in 2006-07, including two who played in both the ECHL and the NHL as goaltender Yutaka Fukufuji played for Reading and Los Angeles while defenseman Bryan Young skated for Stockton and Edmonton. Dave McKee played for Augusta and dressed for five games as the backup goaltender for Stanley Cup champion Anaheim.

- ECHL has been represented on last seven Stanley Cup champions.

- There are 15 coaches in the NHL who have ECHL experience including former Wheeling coach Peter Laviolette, who is head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes, and former Mississippi coach Bruce Boudreau, who is head coach of the Washington Capitals.
- ECHL has affiliations with 26 of the 29 teams in the American Hockey League, marking the seventh consecutive season that it has had affiliations with 20 or more teams in the AHL.

- ECHL has been represented on last 18 Calder Cup champions.

- In the last five seasons the ECHL has had more call-ups to the AHL than all other professional leagues combined with over 2,000 call-ups involving more than 1,000 players since 2002-03.
ECHL and its member teams contributed nearly $3 million for charity and relief funds in 2006-07.

- Further information on the ECHL is available from its website at ECHL.com.

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ECHL Stories from March 28, 2008


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